Rondo
by yukixed
Summary: The repeating cycle of tragedy. Warning: Includes Link Joker spoilers.


Rondo

Story: Yuki

*NOTE*: In this fic, Kai cannot be saved like normal reversed fighters by just defeating them.

* * *

_He was a lone wolf._

_Another existence that none could grasp, not even I._

_When I thought I finally caught up, he disappears into the mist._

_Then, transcending across time, through the last tragedy…_

_We met again._

_Kai Toshiki…_

_The man I couldn't stop falling in love with._

In solitary darkness, screams of pain echoed. There was a sole name repeated, "Kai". It was a scream which shook my world, be it the real world or my dreamscape. I couldn't escape from the endless vicious cycle; we were fated to fight until one of us fell.

Through many decades, history repeated itself. Even as our heart beats as one in the present, I felt the day of our separation approach. We were born with no memories of our past lives, yet no matter how many times we were reborn, we would meet.

Is this given to us from the pity of the gods or is this a punishment of our naivety of trying to shirk our responsibilities of leading our clans in the planet, Cray… Unknowingly, we continue this 50th cycle of repeated history.

"Aichi?", he asked with a kind voice and helped to prepare the kitchen table for dinner.

"It's nothing, Kai-kun.", I replied.

"You know, you shouldn't space out when you're eating… You've got a grain of rice on your cheek."

As soon as he said that, Kai licked the rice grain and swallowed it, leaving me speechless in embarrassment as I flushed red.

"KAI-KUN!"

"That's what you get for not listening to me and spacing out. Anymore protests and I won't let you sleep tonight.", he said with one eye closed and the other looking at me.

We are now living together in a private apartment and are engaged although we haven't registered our marriage. Kai wants to save up so that we can go on a proper honeymoon so our official wedding was postponed to next year.

It's been a long time since we had both played vanguard but we still treasure our decks dearly. Everyone in Cardfight Capital and Team Q4 had split up on our individual journeys... Our lives were peaceful and happy as they were even as they weren't easy to get by; we were together. That's why I didn't know what to do, when the dark storm destroyed what we deemed "everyday life" so easily.

It all just came too fast as black rings filled the skies and everyone had became nothing but walking corpses with the urge to cardfight and win. That day, I ran home in anxiety, panicking when no one was home when Kai would usually be. I called, I searched but Kai was nowhere to be found. I screamed, I cried, I called out his name until I lost my voice but there was still no reply.

"Kai-kun…"

The warm home I lived in was now silent and lonely with only me, the familiar voice hadn't been heard in days. Even if I called out, only silence would respond.

I couldn't help but feel my heart tearing up from within; I was so empty in a home without him.

His smiling face and kind voice of "I'm home." was supposed to be the happy life we dreamed for, the life we had finally managed to attain. I clutched the ring on my finger tightly as beads of salty prayer left my eyes…

"Come back please… Kai-kun…"

Just then the television switched on its own…

"Hello, cardfighters from all over the world. It makes me glad that some of you are still struggling even now."

That voice… Takuto-san?

"This may seem sudden… but your world is going to be destroyed. This is unavoidable; the world will be dominated by Link Joker."

Just then, a figure emerged from behind Takuto and not a single thing he said could be heard. That figure, it was Kai. However, the usual him who would put on a poker face but was kind at heart was no longer there. The young man who stood behind him wore a cold and dark expression, one that pushed everyone away from his side.

"Kai… kun?"

I couldn't believe my eyes as I crawled and clung onto the television. The man I had sought for so dearly was so close, yet so far. It was so cold, so painful without him. I couldn't help but repeat the name of that person who would no longer return to me…

I had to pull myself together; I had to stop Takuto and bring Kai back. Just then, someone kicked the door open.

"Yo, Aichi."

History flipped to the exact same pages, where nothing had changed. The same familiar voice was here to greet me with despair…

"Miwa-kun?"

"To get to Takuto, you'll have to fight _him_ first."

"You don't mean…"

"Ding-ding-ding! You can't avoid the fight against Kai. It would be a good fight, wouldn't it?"

"Why? Why would Kai-kun do something like this?"

"You made him do it. More precisely, you and Ren; you both got stronger and Kai was being left behind, that's why he chose the power of Link Joker… So that he could be your equal once again."

"Kai-kun… It's my fault that he…"

"Fight Kai with all you have. This is all I can do on his behalf as a friend…"

Just like that, the door clicked shut and Miwa left. It was my fault Kai had given in to darkness… Despite us being together for so long, I never noticed that I had been hurting Kai the entire time. Not being able to hold back any longer, I screamed and let the tears escape my eyes continuously. My feelings had gone out of control; I threw everything around in exasperation until I smashed the mirror where I saw my own reflection of who I had became: a weak coward, the Sendou Aichi who would run away without putting up a fight, the Aichi who could not protect anyone. The shards embedded themselves in my hand and the red liquid slowly seeped out of my helpless hands… The world just began to black out as I heard frantic voices echo in my dreams…

"Aichi! Aichi!"

When I woke up, I was in Cardfight Capital with the others. Everyone seemed to be looking at me worriedly, some crying, some reprimanding me for my foolishness as I slowly forced out the words that Miwa had told me. I knew I was responsible for bringing back Kai, but somewhere inside, I was unwilling to fight the man I loved. My heart was locked by hesitation.

Quick footsteps came up to me and a crisp crack broke the silence. My face felt numb and the red-haired man pulled my collar violently, I had never seen Ren get so angry before.

"Aichi-kun, remember what Kai did for you, for us, when we had been engulfed by the power PsyQualia. Remember what Kai always believed in; he only believes in his own strength. Remember the Kai we know, the Kai we want to bring back. Are you sure you want to let Kai continue like this without even trying to bring him back? Is this all Kai means to you?"

As soon as he said his piece, Ren let go of my collar slowly.

"Aichi-kun, I trust you to bring Kai back. Please, bring the Kai I know back…"

His voice was shaking and no one could see his face. Ren was in pain too, as much as I was, from the loss of a dear friend.

"I understand. I—No, we will all bring him back, together."

I held the Gold Paladin deck in my hands tightly, silently praying for everything to be alright.

"Wait for me, Kai-kun… I'll bring you back."

The final clash had came sooner than expected, with many of us trying our best to fight for the ones we held dear. The world's fate was left in the hands of one, one left to fight against the person he loved deeply.

"Slash through everything with your cursed blade and cover the world with the darkness of death! Break ride! Star-vader, Chaos Breaker Dragon!"

5 damage… I have to draw a heal trigger now or…

"Aichi, why are you hesitating? Draw, and be defeated."

Just at that moment, I felt a sense of Déjà vu… Where had I heard this—

Flashbacks of Kai and I in different scenarios kept appearing, all of which I had killed Kai with my own hands to save the world. I couldn't change our fate, I couldn't save Kai who at the end regretted letting go of me for power. Every single flashback ended with Kai crying and saying that he was sorry for putting me through all of this… I was tired, tired of this endless cycle where we had to kill each other. If we didn't meet, Kai wouldn't have got involved with me. If we didn't meet, all of this wouldn't have happened…

I put down the cards in my hand and walked towards Kai.

"Aichi, what're you—"

"Just let it end, this way."

I took the sword from Kai's hands, the very same sword which murdered his own faith in his strength, and stabbed myself.

"With this, everything will finally end…"

Watching the falling body collapse right front of him, Kai's voice began to shake as he dropped his cards.

"A-aichi… Don't do this! I… never asked for this to happen. All I wanted was to stand on equal grounds with you and Ren, I didn't ask for you to disappear. I…"

What had he done? Kai never wanted Aichi to die, he never wanted Aichi to leave him. But now, he was the very reason Aichi was dying.

"Kai-kun… Why're you crying?"

"Aichi, don't leave me…"

The tears spilled out uncontrollably, slowly erasing the Link Joker marks on his face. This time, things hadn't repeated like the past 49 times; the repeating history had changed.

"I'm sorry, Kai-kun. I love you."

I kissed him softly on the lips with a smile; this was goodbye.

_It's going to be okay. This time, I'll change things._

_It might be a little painful, but we won't meet._

_Live your life happily, Kai._

"Eh?"

A young brown-haired boy stood alone holding a vanguard card he had intended to give someone. The question was, who? He was alone with no one else, yet he felt like someone had been next to him just before this. In his hands was the rare card, "Blaster Blade".

"I feel like something's missing…"

Something just didn't seem to feel right; he felt so empty inside.

That day, he stood at the same spot even when it rained, afraid he would miss the person he was waiting for, somewhere deep inside his heart. The cold wind made him shiver as he quietly stood there and waited until his head began to spin, everything turned dark. Then a familiar voice echoed…

"Kai-kun, I've always wanted to play against you someday like this."

"Why won't you recognize me?!"

"Kai-kun…"

"It's all my fault…"

"I love you."

When Kai awoke, he was in his room resting. He was brought back by a passerby who saw him faint and apparently, he had been diagnosed with a bad flu and high fever. Kai tried to explain to his mother what he had heard while unconscious but his mother simply brushed it off as a dream.

Many years had passed and Kai was now 18, but he had never forgotten the familiar voice in his dreams back then. Everyday without fail, Kai would visit that same spot, hoping that the person he was waiting for would appear.

Looking at the "Blaster Blade" card he had kept so dearly, Kai made his way towards that same spot again. Will that person appear today? Today was the day he had been standing at that spot, with "Blaster Blade" in his hands, years back. Kai didn't want to keep his hopes high because he was afraid of disappointment again but just then someone hugged him from behind.

Kai froze; he shouldn't know someone of this stature yet it was so familiar and his heart squeezed so tightly that tears began to fall. Turning behind, a boy with blue hair smiled at him.

He didn't know why, but the name "Aichi" escaped Kai's mouth. He hugged the boy tightly in his arms, vowing never to let go of him again.

"I'm back, Kai-kun."

_I will never forget this day._

_It could've been just on a whim of the gods or maybe a miracle sparked by Kai's faith in believing that I would return…_

_The beautiful clear skies will be a memory I will never forget e__ven if the world is destroyed_

_The clock ticking inside of me started moving again..._

_Today will be our real "beginning", in a world where Reverse never came about._

* * *

Yuki: Filled with much CFV feels, thus the fic. I'M SORRY IF ITS REALLY BAD, I DON'T KNOW HOW I WAS COMING UP WITH THE PLOT HALF THE TIME. /SOBS/ IT WAS JUST EXPLODING FEELS.

In this fic, Aichi decides that he doesn't want to kill Kai anymore like he did in the previous 49 times, thus he chooses to kill himself this time. He changes the past, making it such that they won't meet so Reverse wouldn't happen but yeah, a miracle happened and he managed to get together with Kai again because his existance was restored. Happy ending; I can't bring myself to angst this pairing any longer.

I HOPE YOU GUYS ENJOYED THIS. Thank you for reading~


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